Artist: Kotzen, Richie
Label: Headroom-Inc
Release: 2011
Duration: 42:26
Rating: 4.5/5
Richie Kotzen, a tireless creative spirit who has kept us happy for the past few years with a bunch of gigs close to our neck of the woods – known for their intimacy, raw energy and a distinct streak of spontaneous “switching off”, is a musician who had an extraordinary musical gift laid in his cradle.
Studio albums keep coming from him like clockwork, and over the last decade of songwriting the guy has hit a real creative zenith in his musical career. It hasn’t been long since we were all worshipping Kotzen’s “Peace Sign” (2009), and here’s the new one, “24 Hours”. There’s not much room left for deep philosophizing. Kotzen is a chiseled artist, and so is his way of preaching through music.
“24 Hours” is a different beast from its predecessor. It’s an album commanded by sonic control with a greater refinement in how it strings contrasts together, sounding organic and natural, while casting Kotzen in a self-assured role the man probably hasn’t played since Mother Head’s Family Reunion. “Peace Sign” felt a lot more wound up, direct and sharp, naturally loaded with the trademarks of Kotzen’s straight-talking rhetoric and that recognizable blend of hard rock, blues, soul, Motown and funk.
This time around, though, Kotzen draws much more heavily on rustic funk and soul forms of the sixties and seventies, the era that had a defining influence on shaping this striking musical figure. The turn back to his roots never feels forced, let alone like he’s trying to sound like one of his teenage idols. Richie grew up on the sounds of artists like Sly And The Family Stone, Hall And Oates, The Spinners and “24 Hours” has some seriously impressive moments that recall those long-gone days (Get It On). Kotzen still carefully tends the little flower of his personal “bluesy” pain, but overall “24 Hours” comes across as much more positive compared to the legacy of its older siblings.
The opening title track doesn’t yet hint at this turn of events, since it’s a wound-up funk hard rock assault marked by a guitar slalom of that trademark whirlwind mix of legato and sweeping escapes straight out of the Richie Kotzen pedigree. Kotzen sounds confident with his vocals. So decisive that it’s instantly clear the man has chased off and left behind every last demon of the past.
The very next track, the supremely melodic Help Me, and especially OMG (What’s Your Name?) right after it, roughly sum up the musical starting points that define “24 Hours” this time. The sound is more controlled. That doesn’t mean it lacks a strongly pronounced contrast of liveliness. If anything, the extra control only deepens it. Kotzen also gained more control by dropping the pick entirely. So we’re witnessing a redefinition of Kotzen’s soloing as we’ve known it so far. As guitarist and vocalist, Kotzen sounds much more compact, defined and polished in the shape of the songs on the album. The record runs just 40 minutes. Less running time let him focus more easily on the essence of the music. The album is once again laced with the juiciness of guitar ornaments from a one-of-a-kind school, which adorn Kotzen’s recognizable signature. Kotzen also left some room for the keyboards of his barely 14-year-old daughter August. Given how little time she’s been playing, she did more than a masterful job. As a perfectionist, Kotzen kept the reins firmly in his own hands. He played all the bass guitar and drums himself. The rock-solid suspension of the funk-shaped rhythmic backbone, along with the crafty filling of space with melodically figured bass lines, confirms this musician’s outstanding pedigree. It all still sounds as if a hard-hitting power trio were in the studio with Kotzen at the same time!
The vivid soul charisma of Richie’s voice ripens from album to album. On “24 Hours” in particular, Kotzen’s vocals actually stand on equal footing with the guitar in terms of expression. The guitar always used to edge out the vocal delivery just a bit. Over the years Kotzen has developed an exceptional range, which he masterfully articulates and adapts to the situation at hand. Vocally, “24 Hours” sounds remarkably grounded , real, and above all deeply intimate in what it says. That innate sense for combining soul acrobatics with seductive melodic hooks is once again brilliantly capitalized on at various points of the album, like the calm and delicately babbling I Don’t Know Why, then the gorgeous Tell Me That It’s Easy, or the closing ballad Twist Of Fate. Setting Richie’s vocals against his daughter August’s backing vocals turns out to be a clever move and works effectively, especially in Stop Me and Tell Me That It’s Easy.
Ten tracks of chiseled charisma from this master musician’s one-of-a-kind musical sermon bring a special album to the scene, one where a remarkable knack for uniting the characteristic elements that generally shape Kotzen sparkles in vivid flexibility, while “24 Hours” also feels sophisticated, natural and intimate, like few albums in Kotzen’s rich discography. An album of intense feelings and contrasting musical statements, set within this artist’s established formula, yet to this day it comes across with exceptional effectiveness in its authenticity.
Lineup
Richie Kotzen – vocals, all instruments
August Kotzen – keyboards
Jerry Cantrell – backing vocals
Bret Domrose – backing vocals
August Kotzen – backing vocals
Production
Richie Kotzen
Track list
01. 24 Hours
02. Help Me
03. OMG (What’s Your Name?)
04. Get It On
05. Love Is Blind
06. Stop Me
07. Bad Situation
08. I Don’t Know Why
09. Tell Me That It’s Easy
10. Twist Of Fate
